Did you know, that management is thousands of years old?

by Ivana Gubser

Somehow everyone knows what management is and what a manager does. At least everyone thinks they know. I’ve always had some kind of picture of management, too, and I’ve been playing down some empty phrases when the subject came up. But I don’t really know what a leader does in a company and where this profession actually comes from until I’ve read the article by Claude S. George. Ok, of course I don’t quite know yet, because this job is much more complex and demanding than I thought and it takes a lot of time to really get to grips with the subject of management.
For instance: Did you know that management is thousands of years old? Of course, it wasn’t called that back then, but If you go back in time, you will see that management is very old and has existed in all centuries, in one way or another. From the Stone Age to the modern age, in all areas there have been and still are leaders. From the birth of chiefs, to elected leaders and representatives, there are leading figures who are needed, especially in times of crisis and change. There have always been leaders who have taken responsibility and guided others in their work.

Let’s take for example Salomon, who directed the establishment of trade agreements , leaded construction projects and has signed peace agreements in the tenth century B.C.
Or the Egypt, who managed to build something incredible for this time. Building the pyramids required incredibly well structured organization and planning. To build them it needed approximately 100’000 men for twenty years, who had to be guided and observed. The Egyptian managers already knew about the value of planning. They truly respected managerial authority and responsibility and saw the value in Job descriptions. Or let’s take the Babylonians, who already documented work processes and tasks at that time, 2000 and 1700 B.C., to have control over them.
Furthermore, let’s have a look at Moses, whose knowledge in government, creating rules and law or in interpersonal relationships made him a great leader and manager.
And of course not to forget the Greeks, who created a democratic government also introduced scholarships and science in their society and these scientific methods became fundamental for following leaders like, for example, Frederick W. Taylor. And also like Frederick Taylor, they already worked on efficiency methods. Plato was the one who said, that no man ought to work in wood and iron at the same time, because then he would not be able to excel. And it was also Plato, who gave the first theory of the division of task, which is essential nowadays. “Perhaps the Greeks more then any other people provided us with the most extensive documentation of management principles, which describe the universality of management, specialization, managements as a art, employee selection, delegation of authority and motion study”. All these traits supply to our modern way of managements.
The expression management is maybe pretty new, but the mandate a manager does, has been there since forever. „In fact, all the truly great leaders of history were managers. Managing countries, managing explorations, managing wars and managing other men’s efforts.” There has always been a need of people to be guided.
Management started in the family organisations, which then transformed into tribes and then they became political units, like for example the Babylonians or Egypt’s. They created financial control and invented protocols and record meetings. They all created something, which is still significant for today’s society and related to management skills.

It is obvious that in these early times, management thought existed, yet it was still a bit superficial and not really worked out yet. But even today, people are still working out the right principles and ways to manage things and people. I think it becomes clear, that management is everywhere and managers are needed in all walks of life. In economics, in education or in ourselves. Today management is a central part of all our doings and beings. And to master that skill of being a good leader in whatever position you want to be, is a difficult and great challenge.